Artists’ Union Gallery

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Paul Fericano at Artists’ Union Gallery

January 20, 2010

I had the pleasure of hearing Paul Fericano read poems new and old at the Artists’ Union Gallery last night. Paul’s is a distinct turn of mind–able to sweep up humor, irony, and deep feeling in a winning trifecta. Paul takes the materials of popular culture–from Elizabeth Taylor to The Three Stooges–and makes of them something transcendent. It is precisely in the moment I am laughing in a Paul Fericano poem that my guard is down. It is then when Paul slips in a modicum of pathos, reminding me of how complex it is to be human, how, as Virginia Woolf puts it in Mrs. Dalloway, “dangerous it is to live even just one day.” These are poems that read like the messages in a bottle that might be written by the last sane man on Earth, when everyone else has gone mad.

I leave you with a poem that is fast becoming one of Paul’s most popular–read in Ojai at an event I was sadly unable to attend. I am grateful to whomever filmed it.

Three Poems in Sugar Mule Online

July 14, 2009

Sugar Mule #32 just went live online, bearing three of my poems. As fate would have it, I plan to read two of these three poems tonight at The Artists’ Union Gallery in Ventura. The reading begins at 7:30PM. Bring a poem or two for the open mic.

And for those of you who can’t make it, for whatever reason–enjoy the poems!

Listen now:

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By Robert Peake | Posted in Poetry, Publications, Readings | Also tagged Artists' Union Gallery, Sugar Mule | Comments (2)

Timothy Green at Artists’ Union Gallery

June 9, 2009

Timothy Green reads beneath the all-seeing eyes I came down from the hills tonight to hear Timothy Green read from his debut book American Fractal. Tim’s work is sonorous, fragmentary, and he reads it well. During his reading a disheveled man kept shuffling papers in his backpack. Afterward, he introduced himself to me as “John,” a “published poet.” He said he, too, lived in Ojai once, before he lost his home. He reeked of alcohol, making it hard to be near him. “Everywhere I go,” he said, “I make the ground safe for barefoot children.”

Poetry seems to attract highly sensitive people–sometimes vulnerably so–more than other art forms. Perhaps it allows us to protect the imagined children that are our own barefooted selves by picking up sharp fragments wherever we go, and assembling them into something sparkling and musical, as Tim did tonight. Or perhaps, like John, we are simply clearing a pathway, or a place to sleep. I was moved by Tim, whose love of poetry has led him through extensive study, and to editing a well-known journal. I was moved also by John, no less possessed of a poet’s turn of mind, who reflected to me, once again, the universality of poetic need. I wish them both a peaceful rest, wherever they lay their head tonight.

By Robert Peake | Posted in Community, Life, Poetry | Also tagged Artists' Union Gallery, Homelessness, Timothy Green | Comments (2)

Sarah Maclay at the Artists’ Union Gallery, Ventura

July 29, 2008

“The sea is dangerous, they say, but not if you’re the sea.”

-Sarah Maclay, “Ocean in White Chair,” from The White Bride

Sarah Maclay drew me down to the seaside tonight, to hear her read poems from her first book, Whore, her second book, The White Bride, and selections from a new, unpublished manuscript. It was great to be back at the Artists’ Union Gallery, among friends. Sarah read poems back-to-back, like a line of train cars speeding down the coast through evening fog. And, as is the tradition at this venue, and precisely at the end of one of Sarah’s poems, the 7:50 freight blared through the dark.

Though many of the poems she read were prose poems, her compelling imagery and sonorous delivery made her work sound as though it might have been written with the blade-like precision of couplets. For all of her unexpected imagery and captivating associations, Sarah is not a surrealist–in much the same way that a poet like Sandra Alcosser is not a surrealist. In fact, Maclay brings to the urban landscape much of what Alcosser brings to the wild places–rough, self-startling observations, deep sensuality, and a ravenous fascination with human concerns–all balanced with a keen, keen ear. It was a pleasure to hear Sarah read tonight, and to step out into the salt air, changed.

By Robert Peake | Posted in Community, Poetry | Also tagged Artists' Union Gallery, Sarah Maclay | Comments (4)

Featured Poet at Artists’ Union Gallery, Ventura

April 25, 2007

I read a range of poems, many new pieces fueled by the MFA–and even some poems about the passing of our son. It was the first time reading them in public, save for a few I read in workshop at the last residency. It felt necessary–like it was time; another stage of honoring and letting go. I also dedicated the first part of the reading to the memory of Sandford Lyne, opening with one of his poems, reading a couple new translations I had done of Machado and Neruda (two of his favorites) and ending the first section with a eulogy in honor of his great spirit.

The place was packed. Roe, our indefatigable host, joked that the event was a sell-out just like Mary Oliver’s reading last week (though Cambell Hall admittedly does hold one or two more people than the Gallery). Still, it was nice to see standing room only. More high praise and fond support: Doris brought her cookies and of course left with an empty bowl. I could not have had a more supportive group in which to read such intimate and personal poems.

Seeing Li-Young Lee read from his own deeply sorrowful, grief-stricken poems last week gave me a model for what it means to honor the experience and honor the art even though it is deeply personal. I felt in some way that seeing him read gave me the strength to do what I had to do tonight.

By Robert Peake | Posted in Grief Recovery, Poetry, Readings | Also tagged Antonio Machado, Artists' Union Gallery, Li-Young Lee, Mary Oliver, Pablo Neruda, Roe Estep, Sandford Lyne | Comments (1)

Erotic Poetry Benefit

February 2, 2007

I will be reading as a featured poet in the Artists’ Union Gallery’s annual Erotic Poetry Benefit. This reading celebrates the erotic in the broadest sense–works that evoke yearning, longing, and loss, as well as the more traditional praises of desire and tributes to the beloved. The reading will be held in conjunction with the gallery’s annual erotic art exhibit, and all proceeds go to benefit the gallery’s good works. The event starts on Saturday, Feb. 10th at 7:00 pm and there is a $10 donation at the door. The gallery is located at 330 South California Street in Ventura.